Hidden
by duerreandrew
Summary: Petrified about her safety, Ron forces Hermione to stay away from the Wizarding War, not knowing how she's going to deal with having Draco for company. Will her parting from Ron lead Hermione into Draco's arms? Only time will tell. WIP Post War.
1. Goodbye

**Hidden**

Chapter 1, Goodbye

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><p>"You have to go, it's best for us both. I won't let your life waste away for nothing. You're too special to vanish." The looks of panic striking his eyes, as hexes were being thrown around the place.<p>

"I can't leave you. We're in this together remember?" Her voice shook by the end, glancing around, she could see people uncontrollably falling to the ground, presuming they were dead.

"Go."

And with that Ron put the invisibility cloak around Hermione, looking her deep in the eyes one last time as she apparated away from him, for god knows how long.

* * *

><p>The world had suddenly turned cold and dark. The light had faded from her and she felt alone. The man that had been there for her from the beginning, had now let her go, for her own good. The wind hit her face suddenly, reminding her that she had to stay hidden.<p>

_Bloody hell Ronald Weasley, always trying to keep me from harm's way._ "Lumos." Finding a spot under an old oak tree, out of sight under the invisibility cloak, she started to read the rest of the Tales of Beedle the Bard. _I hope he's safe, I'll go closer to the fight in a bit, just to make sure._ Focusing her eyes back to the book, she began reading: "_Temper with the deepest mysteries – the source of life, the essence of self – only if prepared for consequences of the most extreme and dangerous kind." What is that even supposed to mean? _Trying to reassure herself he would be fine she heard some faint footsteps, crackling on the ground near where she sat. Placing the book in her lap, she fixated her pose and sat as still as she could, clutching the invisibility cloak around her.

It was Malfoy. Running. _What is he doing here?_ The look of panic was written all over Draco's face, as he sprinted away from the oncoming danger. The faster he ran, the closer he got to Hermione, eventually running straight into her.

"Who's there? Show yourself now!" Draco screeched, wand pointing towards Hermione's face.

Hermione contemplated her decision for a second, looking around to see if the person chasing Draco was close behind, thought it safe to take off her cloak. "Shh be quiet Malfoy, someone could hear you!" Hermione whispered harshly to him. "What were you running from, why are you in the forest when there's a war going on?" Questions were running through her mind, she didn't want to dwell too deep; she wasn't prepared to hear that something had happened to Ron.

"I shouldn't be telling you a thing, Granger. But seeing as we are alone now," he stepped closer to her, crouching to the ground so that their faces were inches apart, "Scabior got restless when he saw you apparate and went to interrogate Weasley to where you had gone. As much as I enjoyed seeing his face squirm with pain, I said I'd go looking for you. That was my escape. I didn't mean to actually find you; I just wanted to get away from the fighting. I _needed_ to go."

Draco, looking closely at Hermione's face, could see the pain in her eyes when he mentioned Ron's name. Slowly but surely she got up and straightened herself, wrapping the cloak around her body, just so that her face was seen.

"You left when they were hurting Ronald, why didn't you stop them? You're such a selfish rat, always thinking about yourself!" Hermione turned and walked in the direction he had come from, taking quick steps over the damp ground.

"Selfish, _me selfish?_ Look at you! You're out here hiding from the war, protecting yourself from any danger, and you have the nerve to call me selfish!" Draco spat at her. Striding up behind her and ripping the cloak off her. "You don't understand. You have to stay. If you go back they'll kill you right there and then". His eyes filled with worry, why was he concerned for her safety?

"Oh like you care, Ronald's out there and for all I know he could be – dead." The word stuck in her throat and it sent a shiver through her body. "I could help them, I could help with the fight, and you can't stop me!" With this Hermione grabbed the cloak out of Draco's hands and wrapped it over herself again. "Run along Malfoy, like a scared weasel you are." Her voice trailed off into the distance.

_What the fuck am I supposed to do? I can't go after her, for I can't even see her. Shit, she's in for it now._

* * *

><p>Hermione edged closer to the opening of the forest, peering over the hedge to see if any sign of life was there. To her luck, the fighting had obviously moved to another part of the grounds, but the entrance to Hogwarts had an eerie stature. People's bodies were lying on the ground, most of them presumed dead. Her heart was in her throat when she saw a shaggy red head lying in the distance, face to the ground, lifeless. Not caring who saw her, she ripped the cloak off and shoved it in her bag, running towards the frail ginger boy. <em>Oh dear gosh, Malfoy was right, they had been torturing Ron. What have I done, I left him when I shouldn't have.<em> But as she crouched down, and put her small shaking hand onto the face of the man, it wasn't Ronald's face she was so shocked to see. Tears streamed down her face as she was looking into Fred Weasley's eyes. Dead and gone. Nothing was going to bring him back.

It wasn't her tears that were leaving little drops on the twins face, it was the rain. As she looked up to the dark sky, the look of dread hit her face. The dark mark was engulfing what the remainder of the stars were left.

Hurried footsteps could be heard from behind her; quickly she straightens out her wand and pointed it in the direction from which the noise was coming from.

"Fuck Hermione, what have you done?" Draco's voice seemed hurried.

"I didn't do this, why are you here?" Hermione's voice seemed agitated and rushed. Not knowing where to look, anywhere but Draco's eyes as she thought she could've burst into tears at any moment. "I suppose you don't know where Ronald could be?"

"Of course not. Shame on that one though. George was it?" A little smirk appeared on his face.

"How DARE you speak as if this is something to laugh at." Hermione stretched her wand towards Draco's face. "I won't hesitate to hex you right now!"

"Calm down Granger, it was a joke. Come on, we have to you go, you can't just stand there plain in sight, Scabior will come and get you, not that I care." With that Draco turned and started walking towards the forest again. Unintentionally, Hermione ran after him, darting her eyes across the ground, looking for any signs of movement.

"Does this mean he's won? Is this it?" Hermione's voice fell as she had come to a sudden conclusion of events.

"I guess so. Come on." Draco turned to Hermione, held out his hand and stood there waiting for her to take it.


	2. Forbidden

Chapter 2, Forbidden

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><p>"How can I trust you, what if you're leading me to a trap?" Hermione's voice croaked.<p>

"I'm not, my parents are dead and I have nothing to look for. I don't want to be a follower of _him_, I'm trying to do the right thing for once, just take my bloody hand Granger!"

Edging forwards, she grasped Draco's hand and the dark, gloomy forest suddenly vanished and as quickly as it vanished, Hermione noticed that they were standing in the hall of Malfoy Manor. The walls were misty, there was no light in the house, and there seemed to be a strange creaking noise coming from all directions of the house, which made the whole atmosphere uninviting. Puzzled and scared, Hermione held out her wand, in case of a surprise attack.

"Lumos" Suddenly Hermione's wand erupted a subtle glow from the tip, the mist was coming from upstairs, though she dared not go up to see what was lurking there.

"I just need some things, stay there, don't touch anything." Draco's voice sounded harsh and cruel. Hermione stood and pitied him for a moment while he gathered his things. He was a boy wounded by his family, being taught that power and pure-bloods was the way to succeed in life. Now his parents were dead, he must have felt something die inside of him. The young blond haired boy had now grown up in the cruellest of worlds, what was left for him now?

Clatters and banging could be heard from upstairs, but Draco had only gone through into the next room. Curiosity built up in inside of Hermione, and she had the sudden urge to see what was up there. With the invisibility cloak wrapped around her, she started climbing each step cautiously. Looking around, the manor didn't look pleasant. Paintings of what could be ancestors were scattered everywhere, eerily looking straight at where she was standing and there wasn't a window in sight.

As she reached the top of the stairs, a blinding white light made her hit the wall, sinking to the ground as she tried to cover her eyes. "AGGH!"

Loud thuds could be heard as Draco ran up the stairs and grabbed Hermione firmly by her wrists, lifting her to her feet. "What are you playing at?" He hissed.

"The light from that room! It startled me!" Hermione pointed towards a closed door, where no sign of light was detectable.

"There's no time for games, I've got the stuff, let's go." Draco, pulling her down the stairs, brought her to the front room where he had gathered essential things. Food, water, clothes.

"I don't plan on going anywhere with you, I – " Hermione stuttered.

"Whether you like it or not, you're staying with me. It's not like Ron or Harry are going to come swooping in from the door and whisk you away to a perfect life. It's not like that."

With that they apparated again, this time to a forest near a lake. There was just enough light to see how beautiful the forest was. Hermione gasped, it was the Forest of Dean, the forest she used to go to with her parents, and the previous winter she had been here with Harry. It hadn't changed, except for the fact that it wasn't winter anymore, so the snow had completely vanished. Instead covered with leaves, all different shades of red and orange were scattered on the ground.

"We're camping here, just until the war dies down a bit. Scabior is still up for tracking you, he want's you all to himself - the filthy brute." Draco spat, whilst beginning to unpack a tent, and with a flick of his wand it was ready.

Hermione looked around. The forest was quiet and the night sky engulfed the horizon. _I despise him_. She began to walk away from the tent, to clear her mind. Everything just wasn't right, it wasn't supposed to end up like this; miles away from Ron.

Hmpf. Hermione slump to the ground just under a tree, wondering where this drastic change could take her, and she didn't like it. She wasn't with Ron, how could this possibly be safe?

* * *

><p>It was the rain that woke her, possibly in the middle of the night. It was hard to tell what time it was with it being dark and silent. She took a moment and just lay there, under the tree she'd fallen asleep at, to let her mind drift off. Her thoughts were consumed by only one person. Ronald Weasley. It had been a day since she last saw him. The war had moved somewhere else, was he safe? She felt an overpowering sense of guilt wash over her as she was here safe, while she didn't know how Ron was doing, alongside Harry. Thinking about her two best friends only made her feel worse. Rain slowly began to dampen her hair making it frizz, but she had no intention of moving from her place. She wanted the rain to drown her, so she could forget about everything.<p>

"Granger, come inside. There is no point of a tent if you're not going to be in it." Draco peered through the open tent door. Seeing her lying on the damp ground, he ran towards her with a blanket, covering her wet frame and hurrying her inside. "Look, I know you're upset about Weasley but you have to get him out of your thoughts for now. It won't do us good." He placed her on a nearby chair, watching her features as her eyes were transfixed onto a blue flame in the corner of the tent.

"What is that?" Hermione gasped. Ron loved the way Hermione could make tiny blue flames light up and place them in jars; it was one of the many things he admired about her. Hermione began to take cautious steps towards the little jar, afraid that the memories of Ron might overpower her. Draco, taken aback, looked at her as the blanket fell to the ground, not knowing what to do; she'd never acted like this before.

"It's a little enchantment I learned. What's wrong with you?" His voice was almost a whisper; he didn't know her to be so fragile.

"TURN IT OUT!" Hermione's figure turned to face him, tears streaming down her face, looking at him if she was ready to attack him.

"Ok, ok!" And the light went out. For a moment they both stood there in the dark, listening to the rain fall onto the trees outside.

She trudged past Draco, brushing his shoulder as she did so.

He could hear her crying all night. As much as he hated her, he felt a bit helpless and it was beyond awkward. _What the fuck am I supposed to do about her? I can't comfort her, that's just out of the picture but it's not like I even want to tell her where the filthy Weasley is anyway._ Slowly her crying came to a stop, and it was silent again.

"_You have to go, it's best for us both."_ She could hear his words running through her mind; if she didn't do something about the words in her head, she was sure to be driven insane.

She lay there in her camp bed, hugging the blanket that Draco had given her. _Please keep Ron alive,_ she prayed. _Please._

Flashes of light were engulfing the tent. It was morning, the rain had stopped and a musky smell of the forest filled the space. Draco hurried to the opening of the tent and peered outside. Him. Ronald Weasley was sending light crashing out of his wand towards - _Who the hell is that?_ Scabior. _Fuck._ Trying to go back unnoticed, Draco closed the door of the tent and knew that they didn't have long before one of them found them. Dashing across the tent, Draco shook Hermione to wake up. She woke confused and tired, rubbing her eyes to wake her up from the horrible dream she was living.

"What's going on?" She stared at him with a puzzled look. Her eyes were puffy from all the crying, she looked too tired to be certain of what she was saying.

"SECTUMSEMPRA!" Ron's voice echoed in her head. Shaking her head she knew it was her imagination, a simple trick of the mind. Draco's face watched with horror and Hermione began to get up and walk towards the opening.

"Stay the fuck away from the door, do you hear me?" he warned.

"I'm not _yours_ to boss about. I'll do what the bloody hell I want to do and you cannot stop me." Carefully, she placed her hand tightly onto the fabric of the tent and opened the flap. In came a sudden flash of light, knocking Hermione straight to the floor. Stunned for a moment, Ron opened the flap of the tent and lifted Hermione's body in his arms.

"I'm so sorry, I had no idea that would be you in there," his hands slowly patting her warm face, sending goose bumps up her arms. "I got worried after you left, I didn't know how we'd keep in contact, and it all frightened me. I thought I'd never get you back."

"Ehem." Draco coughed from behind them. Oblivious to the fact that he had been standing there all along, Ron's eyes looked up, and scorned with disgust, almost dropping Hermione from his grasp.

"What is she doing with _you?_" His voice was firm but quaky. He couldn't believe it; the girl he loved was with his worst nightmare. It didn't make sense. Rons eyes darted from Hermione's delicate face, to Draco Malfoys suddenly smirking face.

"Oh, you know." Draco winked at Ron. _This is going to be fun._ He began walking towards Ron, stretching out his hand to take Hermiones, but Ron was too quick as he stood back. "She misses me already, just let me hold her hand." Dracos grin grew bigger. His eyes started to sparkle as he could see how angry Ron was getting. The red head was furious.

Ron lunged at Draco, dropping Hermione as he did so, arms stretching out to grab his throat, his face almost matching the same tint as his hair. "I'll kill you!" he screamed, jumping onto Draco and getting a firm hold of his neck.

Unaware of what was happening around her; Hermione slowly raised herself and looked around. All she could make out was a red fire, screaming at what seemed to be Malfoy. _I must be dreaming, what the hell is going on?_ Bemused, Hermione blinked and got up. Her vision focused on him. Ron was on Draco, strangling him. Draco's yelps grew louder; it didn't help as it seemed to screech in her ears.

Running towards Ron, Hermione took a hold of his shoulders, "Stop Ronald, you're hurting him!" Her voice came out as a whisper. Jumping onto him, she took his face in her hands and turned his face to hers and said "Stop, this isn't you, please." And with that he let go.

"You could have fucking killed me, you worthless piece of -"

"Oh shut up Malfoy, as you can see, no one gives a damn." Hermione's eyes closed and turned to face Ron who was standing in front of her, holding her by the waist.

"How did you find me?" the warmth of her breath hit his face.

"I didn't. It was Scabior, he made me go with him, obviously taking away my wand, but as we got closer to the tent I punched him to the ground and got my wand. I only prayed it was you inside. Think he's still outside. No idea." Ron looked wonderingly into her eyes, trying to read what was on her mind.

Hermione's eyes looked pained, for she hadn't noticed the scar going down Ron's chest from the opening of his shirt. Placing her fingers softly to his skin, she felt the deepness of the scar. Ron winced, the feeling of her hand on his skin sent a deep warmth into his chest, but it also physically pained him. He took her hand off his chest and kissed it softly with his lips. "I've missed you."

"I think I'm going to be sick." Draco's voice trailed from behind them. He quickly got up, brushing a few stray hairs off himself and made his way to the entrance of the tent.

"SCABIOR! Come here now, I've found the filthy Granger and Weaslebe."

Before they could apparate, Scabior was in the tent, holding a wet tissue stained with blood over his nose. He was beyond angry, he had cuts everywhere and the way he was looking at Ron wasn't pleasant. Suddenly, his eyes drifted over to where Hermione was standing. Looking at her physique, he gave a little smirk as he started walking towards her.

Ron stood protectively in front of Hermione, wrapping his arms around her. Hermione stood closer to him, smelling his damp hair scented by the leaves of autumn. Never before has she loved him as much as she did at this moment. She could feel his grip tightening around her, she wasn't sure what his expression was, but she knew he was scared. She placed her hand onto his shoulders and kissed his neck. "Everything will be ok Ronald." She whispered into his ears.

Scabior walked towards them both, throwing the cloth to the corner, Draco behind him. Draco's speed won the game. He'd quickly appeared beside Hermione, grabbing her by the hand and dragging her over to the other side of the tent, Hermione resisted, throwing punches towards him, but as if made of stone, it didn't affect him. He turned her to face away from him and faced her towards Ron, wrapped his arms around her, holding her in a tight lock. Squirming, Hermione couldn't budge, all she could see was Ron's distraught face as Scabior walked towards him. "I'm sorry" Ron mouthed. Suddenly a cold rush hit them all; a breeze flew into the tent as Harry Potter apparated into the tent.

"HARRY!" Hermione screamed, as he grabbed Ron by the arm. A quick bright red light hit Scabior, making him fall to the floor, she knew he wasn't dead, but what Harry had done, she wouldn't know as Harry rushed over and apparated the four of them out of the tent.

Hermione was still in the arms of Malfoy, disgusted at the look of the two of them being so close together, Ron picked her up and stood her by him.

"Why the hell did you apparate _him_ with us, he's only going to get us into further trouble!" Ron looked at Harry, pointing his wand towards Draco.

"Like I want to be here!" Draco spat, "You should be dead Potter, sooner or later you will be."

"How dare you," Hermione leaped from behind Ron and drew her arm to slap him, but before she could he had his hands tightly locked around her wrist.

"Bye-bye Potter, Weasley." Draco's face sneered at them as he apparated away from them, with Hermione Granger.


	3. The Letter

Chapter 3, The Letter

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><p>The warmth of Draco's hand around her wrist sent a small tingling up her arm. Looking around, she noticed they were in a tower at Hogwarts, completely deserted and alone. A small light flickered by the window, a tiny rectangle in the wall, and no sign of life anywhere. There was an odd smell in the room, quite musty and metallic. As Draco let go of her arm, she saw the light in his eyes twinkle, as a small sigh of reassurance swept his face.<p>

He was staring at her now, with hope that they could start a fresh, without Weasley or Potter getting involved. She dropped her face as she sat down by the window, tapping her wand irritably against the rock walls, staring out onto the lake. "Why bring me here?" she started.

"Where else was I to bring you where no one would come looking?" he edged closer to her, wondering if the tingling sensation that occurred once he touched her arm would happen once more. The faded light lingered on her face, showing her perfect complexion with her hair curling in every direction.

She looked irritated, at any one moment she could just flick up her wand and spring on him, but she didn't. She was hurt, Ron wasn't with her and she was confused as to why Draco kept on taking her away from him, he hated her, despised her, so why was she always ending up with him? The look on Rons face when Hermione apparated away with Malfoy remained in her head. He was torn. His words of "I'm sorry" rung in her mind, and the fact that she saw Ron jumping towards her and Draco before they apparated made her feel even worse. She crumpled herself onto the window ledge, holding her stomach as if all the air in the room had left in an instant.

"What is your problem?" She asked, turning her head to face the moon outside.

"You. You are the problem. Look at you; somehow everything has turned perfect for you. I'm the one who is supposed to have it all,' his voice getting darker 'not you, you're a filthy mudblood and you have everything, it's not right!"

Hermione flinched after hearing the word mudblood, the scar on her arm burned by the thought of Bellatrix being so close to her. Her whole body spun towards Draco, throwing her arms towards his face, but a quick movement of his arm stopped her hand touching him.

"How dare you even say that! How dare you!' She edged closer to him, making him back up closer to the wall, 'You are so self-centred it must hurt for you to be away from all your money and treasure, to being stuck in a room with me. The feeling is mutual if you haven't already noticed; you're the one who brought me with you, through choice! Yes it was you, not me, keep that in mind the next time you try to insult me you loathsome little cockroach. And of course I don't have everything. You've taken me away from all I had. You weren't even supposed to be near me, and you took me away from Ronald. So no, my life is far from perfect at this moment."

Draco spat at her feet, "Keep your bloody mouth shut; I don't need this right now. I don't have you here by choice; you have to be here with me, its orders. The castle is the only place no one will come looking; you're part of the plan Granger."

"You're so pathetic, you do nothing for yourself! Just look at you!" Hermione dug her hand deep into her bag and pulled out a muggle play named 'Romeo and Juliet', perched herself back on top of the window ledge and began reading, using the moonlight to aid her sight.

Draco watched as her bushy hair fell over her face, as he slowly backed up into the corner, scrutinising her carefully. Taking out a small cigarette from his back pocket, he tapped his wand gently on the end of the cigarette, igniting it, and taking a slow deep breath inwards. That long needed puff of smoke began to fill the room, slowly wafting towards the window as if it were trying to escape, encircling Hermione on its way. Looking irritated, her eyes snapped up, darting in the direction to where Draco was slumped against the wall.

"Do you mind?" She lifted her right arm as to signal the smoke around her.

Lifting his face he stared at her, his blue eyes glowing a greyish colour in the dull room, his blond hair almost glistening in the moonlight. "Hah, it's a little smoke, want some?" His lips turned into a coy smile which made him look more mischievous than ever before.

"Thanks but no thanks, smoking disgusts me."

Looking at her, Draco blew a puff of smoke towards Hermione, forcing her to move from her position at the window. She got up, ever so gracefully, and leapt towards the small bed in the opposite corner of the tower from where Draco was sitting.

"Lumos." Her wand lit up her face as she carried on with her reading.

Draco butt out the remainder of his cigarette on the ground and threw it out of the window. Through the window he could see the remainder of what was left of Hogwarts. The tower in which they were in was at the East of the school, overlooking the forest. The night was dark and cold with a few sparkling stars in the sky, but all he could think about was how he was going to shake off Voldemort. Voldemort was looking for Harry. Harry isn't at the school and Voldemort knows that, that's why he brought them back to Hogwarts.

"You sleep on the bed tonight since you've already sat your filthy self-down on it."

"That's fine by me. Nox" She puffed.

And with that, the lights went out.

* * *

><p>He awoke early that morning to the sound of scuffling papers and furniture being moved about. It was Hermione searching for something under the bed. Every so often she would bang her head on the low lying piece of furniture and mumbled a few words to herself as she did so. He couldn't help but watch her, everything she done was so elegant and smooth. <em>Stop, I mustn't think of her in that way. She's a mudblood for crying out loud. Utter filth.<em>

The room was filled with light of the morning. It was early dawn, he could tell since the sun hadn't risen to its full potential. Eventually Hermione slunk back from beneath the bed, only to turn and to see Draco staring at her legs.

"Watch it where you've fixed your eyes." Her glaring seemed to burn with fury.

"You watch how you present yourself, can't expect me to wake up, seeing you bent over like that and not to take a peek? Come on."

He lifted himself from the ground and stretched his body, just to refresh himself. Hermione glanced over and saw his muscle covered arm tense and relax, making her flush, quickly looking away before he caught her staring.

"A-anyway, how are we going to get food?" She spoke, sitting herself down onto the bed. "All the food we had was in that tent."

"Easy, there's the door, and you'll go looking. For someone as smart as you, you're really quite stupid."

Hermione began towards the door before Draco grasped her arm, turning her around to face him, inches away from his breath.

"Watch yourself. I didn't say we were alone, who knows what's going on in the school."

"You're still making me go on my own, even though you have a hunch that we might not be alone, in search for food?" Her voice rose with a slight tremble.

"Of course, who else would stay behind and keep this area safe?" He winked at her as she left the tower.

It was cold. She pulled down the sleeves to her jumper as she walked steadily down the stairs and into the corridor. Clutching onto her bag she began to notice how dark the school was with no one in it, but there was just enough light for her to be able to see someone standing at the other end of the corridor. She froze. It was Blaise. Her hand hovered over the invisibility cloak in her bag, but it was too late, he'd spotted her.

Turning towards her, she saw his eyes were pure white, but he didn't move towards her. A slow cry of "help" escaped his lips as he crashed to the floor. "Homenum Revelio" they were alone. She quickly scurried over to where Blaise was lying on the floor, staring blankly into the sky. Covering him in the invisibility cloak, she ran back up the spiral staircase she'd came down from, and into the room Draco was sitting in.

"That was quick Granger."

"Quick, help, you've got to come!"

"Slow down Granger, what the bloody hell are you talking about?" Draco rose from his place in the corner, straightening out his physique.

"It's Blaise, something's wrong with him, he's downstairs, COME ON!" She turned around and sped down the steps, uncovering Blaise's motionless body.

Shock drew over Dracos face; they had been close friends for the past few years and the possibility that he might be dead dawned on him. He watched as Hermione muttered spells with none of them succeeding. He slowly bent to the ground and saw with a flicker of his eyes, Blaise was breathing.

"Finally, it was a blinding curse, I think he's better.." her voice trailed off.

"Blaise, get up you fool! Who done this to you!" Draco was suddenly irritated.

"Uhm I don't know, as you can see, I was cursed you idiot!"

Suddenly tension rose in the air, as Draco and Blaise had their wands pointed towards each other. Draco pulled Hermione behind him, keeping her locked out of the way.

"You two stop! There is no point in this, you're both acting immature!" her voice shrilled.

"Draco, lower your wand, what the fuck are you doing?" Blaises temper was rising, as was Dracos.

Hermione freed her arm from Draco and rushed back up the stairs into the small chamber. Sitting on the window ledge, the sun shone on her delicate features as she took out a quill and a piece of parchment from her bag and began writing hastily on it.

_Ron, I don't understand why you let me go in the first place, I know it was for my own good but with me ending up with Malfoy wasn't part of the plan. I do not like it one bit. We've just came across Blaise and now him and Draco are having a battle. That's what I'm left me to put up with. I miss you. You know I'd never leave you if Malfoy hadn't grabbed me before you could stop him. Hope you and Harry are keeping safe. If you ever need me, you know who I'm with. Get in touch with me soon? I feel as if I'm stuck in isolation with him. Don't do anything stupid, please._

_-Hermione Granger_

As Hermione searched in her bag for an envelope, running footsteps were heard coming up the stairs. Looking over her shoulder she saw it was Draco, covered in blood. His shirt was drenched in the rich red colour, streaming like water; blood was flowing from his nose, small cuts were on his face, showing his dark imperfection, as his eyes were angry, and his hands clenched into tight fists, with one tightly holding onto his wand, as his life depended on it.

Shock was written all over her face as he darted around the room, finally making the decision of taking off his shirt, to wipe away his blood stained face.

"What _happened?_ Where is Blaise?"

"Fucking prick, tried to hex me. Ended up disarming him, but then he threw bloody punches at me. Ungrateful little shit."

"So where is he now?"

"Still down there, think he's crying or something. He's so pathetic."

"Draco did you hurt him?" Hermione raised herself off the ledge, placed the letter into the envelope and stared at him straight in the eyes.

"No."

"If what you say is true, we should probably leave him there to cool down; I'll go check on him in a while."

Draco looked at her momentarily, staring her straight in the eyes, and then looked away as he continued to clean the blood off his body.

Hermione turned away from Draco and sat on the bed, contemplating how she was going to send the letter. Ideas flowing into her head, she began quickly tapping her wand onto the piece of parchment in her hand.

"What's that?"

"Oh, it's just a letter I want to send Ron."

"You can't tell him where we are!"

"And why not? He has every right to know where I am and what's happening."

"Fine, send this letter, but only this one. If this letter is to get in the wrong hands, then we have to move again, and this time I have no idea where it is we'd go."

Hermiones eyes looked towards Draco, as a small hint of a smile emerged from her lips. "Thanks."

"Just enchant the letter like they do in the ministry, it'll probably get to him."

The room grew silent as Hermione watched her letter fly out of the window towards the other end of the school, hoping the letter to get to Ron as quickly as possible. Draco wiped away the remainder of blood off his face and stared at the door, as if he was waiting for Blaise to come running in, but he didn't. _What's wrong with him, one minute he's fine, the next he's lashing out as soon as Hermione's away. Something's not right._


	4. Tears

Chapter 4, Tears

* * *

><p>They were running. On either side of her she saw the two faces she had longed to see. The long, lean figure of the red headed young man that she so desperately wished to hold was there, by her side, running with her. And on her other side was her best friend, Harry Potter, the sparkle in his eyes signalling that everything was going to be alright. Though where were they running to? What were they running from?<p>

"Don't look back." His voice was stern and hurried as he quickly glanced over his shoulder to the oncoming danger. "Trust me." As he quickly entwined his fingers within hers, squeezing it as a sign of assurance that there really was nothing to fear.

"But Harry..." Her voice rose at the shock that Harry wasn't there anymore. Ron had grasped Hermione into an embrace, shielding her. Suddenly everything went quiet. The rustling of the trees of the forest blew a cold wind through Hermione's neck, caressing her skin. Ron's warm body tightened his hold on the girl he had not held in what seemed like years. Looking deeply into his eyes, her voice managed a whisper. "What's happening?"

Ron looked down at her with a soft enthusiasm in his eyes and a warm smile that lingered on his lips. "Hermione, I…"

Suddenly she awoke, looking around dazed; she noticed the pillow she was clutching onto for dear life had been entwined around her arms like an embrace. It wasn't Ron. Her emotions unexpectedly got the better of her as she lay in her bed, weeping silently at the beautiful dream that involved her two best friends was now fading from her memory. Silently she lied there, bringing her legs towards her stomach as if to protect herself from any danger, thinking about the last time she had Ron by her side.

"Granger, are you awake?"

Draco was standing at the other end of the room, hidden in the shadows, his grey eyes glistening from the reflection of the sun. He stepped forward cautiously but wavered and stepped back, searching for approval from this delicate young woman.

"Y-yes. Why, have you been awake for long?" She propped her arms to hoist her up, quickly throwing a hand through her hair at the tight curls that had formed overnight. Facing Draco, she could see that he was concerned. He remained silent for a few moments before taking the chance to speak.

"You've got a letter." His arm extended towards Hermione, a thin brown envelope in the midst of his fingers engulfed the scrawny handwriting of Ronald Weasley. She looked at it curiously, eyeing Draco's expression as she warily took the letter from his hand, crackling the paper as she did so.

Sitting upright, she gazed at the letter for a few moments before deciding to open it. Her eyes scanned the paper quickly as her heart started to race at the badly written letter she had in front of her. Tears formed at the ends of her eyes as she reached the conclusion of the letter that Ron had quite obviously rushed. Looking up at Draco, his face was anxious as he stood awkwardly looking at Hermione's reaction, and that was it. He walked over to the door of the small tower and left the room, looking back in Hermione's direction and seeing her head fall into her knees, crying.

_Shit, I knew I shouldn't have given her that letter._ Draco descended the stairs, two steps at a time, almost in a sprint. By the time he'd got to the bottom step, he reached for his wand and held it out in front of him. Up ahead, Blaise was leaning against the stone pillar, holding his head in his hands. He was dishevelled and making slow grunting noises, every so often his body jolting at every grunt. Presuming he was asleep, Draco prodded him with the end of his wand making Blaise's body rock to the side.

"Blaise, wake up," his voice being stern as he placed his hand on his shoulder and shook him from his sleep. "Look, it's not safe here. Just go up to the tower where Hermione is and sleep there. Aren't you freezing?" He looked around at the hall, a few rays of sunlight hitting his skin. The cold winters air blowing outside, whisking away any stray leaves.

Blaise groaned as his eyes opened a fraction. Looking up at Draco he was suddenly at ease, his body relaxing as he stood up to flex his muscles. "Look I'm sorry for last night; I sort of just lost it." Blaise held out his hand towards Draco, waiting for him to shake it. Draco stared at his hand for a moment then clutched it in a tight shake.

"You do that to me ever again and you'll be the one that ends up with the bruises." Draco's eyes grew dark as he held onto Blaise's hand for a moment longer, tightening his grip, and then letting go as he saw the expression in Blaise's face change, filling with unease. Blaise stepped back and took his palm and started to massage it with his other hand, realizing that Draco had just threatened him.

"So, anyway, where's Hermione? What are you even doing with her? I thought you two hated each other."

Looking up at the unexpected question, Draco began to rattle through his head for the perfect answer. His eyes shifted from Blaise to the marble stairs of the tower where Hermione was crying, looking back at Blaise he was taken aback. "She's up in the tower. Leave her. She's being all emotional at the moment I honestly couldn't stand it. It's none of your business what I'm doing with her, we just happened to run into each other during the battle, she's very resourceful," he stepped into the sunlight, closing his eyes as the breeze caressed his face, "and we do, very much, still hate each other. I haven't a clue as to why you would think differently."

"It's because you're with her. Out of all the people you could be with, you're found with Hermione Granger."

"Didn't you listen to what I just said? She's resourceful and we ran into each other. Remember the saying, keep your friends close but your enemies closer, well yeah, we're living up to that." Draco's attention shifted to the clearing. "Right, I'll just leave you to whatever it is you're doing, I'm off for a walk." Draco turned and started walking towards the direction of the Quiddich pitch, wand at the ready.

"Oi, are you mental? There could be death eaters out there!" Blaise's voice echoed around the hall, bouncing from wall to wall until it hit Draco.

"There is no death eater here. They're looking for Potter; do you really think they'd be that stupid to come back to the school?"

He turned away from Blaise and carried on striding ahead. The wind grew colder as he walked deeper towards the pitch, looking at it from afar, he could see that it was destroyed. The goals had cracked and some had fallen onto the pitch, it was a sorry sight. Draco paused for a moment, scanning the horizon for any movement. For a quick second he saw it. It was Potter, running through the forest. But it couldn't have been, he was miles away like Ron had wrote in the letter, so who was it that he'd just seen? All too suddenly, the clouds moved in, covering the warming sun, hiding it from view. The air grew cold and bitter as Draco looked at the clouds as they formed dark grey circles. Turning to a light jog, Draco began his short run back to the tower.

* * *

><p>She was wiping the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand as the light left her face. She couldn't move. The letter was fixed to her hand as she began to fall back onto the bed. Closing her eyes she wished of a better place, a place where he was. Dropping the letter on the floor, she got up and gazed at the sky, her chocolate eyes glistening whilst she began twirling her hair; starting to search her mind as to what to do to help Harry and Ron. A moment later, Draco burst into the room. He was soaked from the rain and out of breath.<p>

"Don't look at me like that; it's been a while since I've gone for a run." A cheeky smile played on his lips.

Hermione cocked her head to the side, scrutinising his every move. Her mouth parted slightly, the words holding back in her mouth, not able to come out. Looking down at her hands, her mind encouraged her and the words just came out. "Can we go help Ron?" She dare not look at Draco; it was hard enough to ask such a thing from him as she suddenly felt exposed. Slowly pulling her head up, she saw Draco sigh. He locked his gaze with hers and she suddenly knew the answer.

"Why not? He's hurt, he needs my help!"

"You know why. It's too fucking dangerous; it'd be too easy to walk into a trap. What if that isn't even Ron or Harry? What if that letter got into the wrong hands and they want to lure us in?" His voice became harsh as he spat every word out with distaste.

"We both know it's not a trap. Harry isn't equipped enough to help Ron, they need me!" She stood up and strode to her handbag at the other side of the room. Bending down to grab her wand, Draco locked his hand around her wrist, holding her tight.

"Don't even try it Granger." His touch, somewhat scolding her skin. "I won't let you go." He began to drag her out of the room, gripping his hold as they hurried down the stairs.

"Where exactly are we going?" She shrieked in his ear, clawing at his hand.

"To show you that Ron isn't fucking hurt!" He spat repulsively.

As they neared the bottom step, Draco stopped to an abrupt halt as his eyes caught up to Blaise who was fixed closely against the cold wall, looking at them with a somewhat confused expression as he caught sight of the two of them in such close proximity. With the sudden change in direction, Hermione walked straight into Draco's hard back, slightly losing her balance for a moment, before trying to look around him at what had stopped their journey.

Taking this as an advantage, Hermione tried to pry her arm from Draco's clutches but with no use. His grip only tightened at her weak attempts of getting free. Pulling her in front of him with a harsh tug of her elbow, he placed his palm over her mouth as he carefully took out his wand and held it in front of them as they began taking slow, quiet steps towards Blaise.

Clawing at the hand that was attached to her mouth, Hermione was able to free herself from Draco's clutches. Taking a strong step to the side, she turned to glare at Draco. Her mouth slightly parted as she prepared to fire an attack on the two Slytherins who were so obviously taunting her with a trick.

"Hey-" her words were cut off when Blaise beckoned her to be silent as his finger was slowly brought up to his lips.

"If this is a trick-" She begun, but was silenced again as Draco leapt to her side, jabbing his wand onto her neck and grabbing her by the elbow.

"_Silencio._" And she was quiet.

Blaise gave the two fighters an irritated look before moving effortlessly towards the second hallway which led to the main staircase of Hogwarts. A few moments passed before Draco and Hermione followed in his tracks, his wand poised for attack.

Out of character, Blaise cried out an ear shattering scream. But not a moment too soon and Draco and the silenced Hermione were by his side, looking for the possible attacker. Draco's eyes studied Blaise for a moment, a wave of embarrassment flowing through him as he followed the path that Blaise was looking towards. It wasn't an attack. It was the bloody Gryffindor house ghost, Sir Nearly Headless Nick, who had frightened him.

"What the _fuck_ is wrong with you?" Draco exhaled, prodding his wand at the humiliated Slytherin.

"It's easy to make a mistake when this place is fucking deserted. It could have been anyone, now lay off Malfoy."

"It's a ghost, what the fuck could he have done to you? Were you scared?" His voice grew louder as the corners of his mouth turned into a slight smirk, "You're such a bloody baby."

"Back off Malfoy."

Blaise turned towards Draco, straightening his back as if to add height to his already full frame. His hand twitched towards the wand that was prodding his leg in his pocket, his fingers slowly brushing the tip of his wand.

The air grew cold as the two young Slytherin's faced each other. Draco's lips tightened into a long contour on his face, his eyes scrutinising his opponent whereas Blaise had a hold of his wand and was slowly spreading his legs wider on the hard stone ground, to steady his next moves.

Before the fighting could begin, Hermione blocked their contact by leaping in front of them, holding up her palms towards the both of them. A distressed look spread across her face that tinged with irritation as she detested not being able to communicate through words. Her head spun from Draco's to Blaise's, locking both of their gazes towards her. Draco shifted uncomfortably as Hermione's eyes widened and her eyebrows arching as he could see the pain that the silencing charm was having on her. Taking a deep sigh of defeat, he released the charm and marched straight towards her, standing between her and Blaise.

"What is wrong with the both of you? Having a petty fight in the middle of a war is so egotistical of the both of you to say the least." Her eyes fixed on Draco, stepping back to have a better look at him. "And _you_. How dare you do that to me! You dragged me out here without my own accord and you just silence me like a stupid bloody doll?" Her arm rose sharply and sent a fast blow to his face. Staggering back, his eyes narrowed.

"Filthy mudblood. Who's to say it wasn't the bloody ghost and you were going about screaming your head off, giving us away? You're not so clever are you Granger?"

Hermione turned on her heels and started to make her way back to the flight of stairs they'd just come down from, her curls bouncing uncontrollably as she stumbled up the stairs towards the tower. Her hand reached for the handle but was quickly stopped when a warm hand turned her around by the shoulder. It was Blaise. His face somewhat remorseful at the young witch as her eyes drooped to her feet, unable to keep eye contact with the young Slytherin.

"Come back Granger. Malfoy wants to show you something." Patting her gently on the shoulder, he pulled at her arm to follow suit. He moved awkwardly down the stairs, slowly turning around every so often to see if she was keeping up.

Arriving back in the presence of Malfoy made her feel uncomfortable; she'd never been content with him in her company. Looking at him through her eyelashes, she was able to mumble a few words out of her dry throat, trying hard to keep her emotions intact.

"What is it Malfoy?" She breathed, focusing her attention back to her hands which were now fidgeting with the hem of her jumper.

"Just follow me. I can't say more than that."

* * *

><p>The school had never looked so lifeless before. All the paintings were strewn across the walls at odd angles, some with gashes through the middle and none of them holding the witch or wizard who had once graced the canvas. The staircases had been attacked, some with gaping holes in the centre of them with their banisters broken or moving at altered speeds. A cold breeze shot throughout the entire building, windows had been smashed which let the frosty wind effortlessly fly through the castle. They had been heading towards the North tower.<p>

"Malfoy, what are we doing here?" Her gaze caught the steps leading to the North Tower. It was Divination. She'd remembered the frustrating moments in her third year when Professor Trelawney had stated that she didn't have the gift to read into the future. _Books can only take you so far in this field_. Her features frowned as Draco turned towards the two Hogwarts students, pointing his wand towards the lock on the door.

"Hold out your wand Blaise, if there's anyone in there we'll need to be ready for attack. Granger, just stay in the shadows or something, don't open your mouth again until it's all clear." He gave her a stern look before nodding his head towards Blaise.

Hermione edged back into the shadows, annoyed that she had forgotten her wand whilst looking at Blaise and Draco as they stepped on either side of the door, directing their wands precisely towards the door lock. With a faint _alohamora_ the door clicked open. A gasp quickly erupted from within the room as Draco and Blaise threw themselves inside. But it was neither of them who the gasp had originated from. It was a woman.

Curiosity got the better of Hermione as she edged closer to the door, unarmed and defenceless. She heard the scurrying of feet as Draco and Blaise tried to find the source of the gasp, turning over tables and throwing bits of furniture around the room. Her head twisted in the doorway as she peered inside, locking her gaze with the terrified professor.

"Miss Granger!" She shrieked, beckoning her to help her. The teacher was worn out, her hair puffed and tangled into unmanageable curls and her glasses bared a small crack in the left hand side. Her clothes were dirty and unkempt, small coffee stains had marked her clothes and her eyes were bloodshot, with many sleepless nights filled under the bags beneath her eyes. The witch tried to steady herself as she rose to her feet, her whole body shaking as she did so. Her eyebrows furrowed into a deep line above her eyes as she tried to comprehend her intruders.

Draco and Blaise had stopped in their positions, looking from the professor to Hermione, their eyes wide with revelation. Draco took a deep breath and sighed with relief, slowly crouching on the ground nearest the window. His eyes fixed on the professor as he steadied his position on the floor.

"I'm so glad you're here."

* * *

><p>"So tell me again, what happened?" Hermione was standing in the corner, making tea for the reluctant professor that had managed to calm herself after their encounter. Stirring the spoon in a clockwise direction, the tea began to heat up and she stopped just as the heat began to steam from out of the mug.<p>

"The battle happened, Miss Granger, I'm sure you're capable of figuring that out for yourself."

"Professor, I just want to understand how you ended up in your room. Surely it wasn't the safest idea you could have come up with?" Her hand held out the tea for the nervous professor, her face filled with sorrow as she studied the older witch's features. She most definitely wasn't saying something to her and it was irritating.

"Miss Granger, before the Battle of Hogwarts, I had looked into the crystal balls and they told me that you three would turn up. I was to give you a message, but what that is I'm not sure of. Mr Malfoy was to tell me. I just hadn't expected you three to turn up here so suddenly, but I'm glad you did. The castle was turning dark; the magic was getting lost in the shadows." Her gaze drifted off towards the ceiling, a sob escaping her lips as she took a sip of the warm tea which engulfed her senses.

"Malfoy, what did you need to tell her?" Hermione placed her hand on the back of a chair and leaned forwards, staring at Draco with an intrigued expression on her face.

"I brought you here so you could see that your precious Potter and Weasel-bee are safe. I hadn't expected Trelawney to be here but that's just a bonus since you were never good at crystal reading." He gave her a short smirk, before his eyes darted towards the professor, who was now swallowing down the tea as if her life had depended on it.

"Oh yes. Would one of you care to pass me my crystal ball?" Blaise looked at the ball that was glistening on the table next to him. His moves were careless as he almost managed to drop the sphere but managing to catch his balance just in time. "Oh do be careful Mr Zabini."

"Fucking carpet." He cursed under his breath as he placed the glass ball into her quivering hands.

"Gather round." She motioned the students towards her by flailing her arms in the air. Each student took a seat around the crystal ball, crossing their legs on the damaged carpet. Hermione's face lingered closer to the ball, her eyes analysing it intently as thoughts of Harry and Ron filled her mind. A few moments passed before she noticed that her breath was fogging up the glass and each pair of eyes were looking at her.

She jolted her neck back and shook her head quickly and turned to face the professor once more. Feeling out of place, she began to fidget with the buttons on her sleeve, causing one to come off completely.

"Granger, stop fucking fidgeting and focus. It's distracting and more than slightly irritating to see you do that." Draco growled towards her, his eyes turning a dark shade of grey.

"Oh, sorry." Glancing back up, she focused herself on the crystal ball once more. "You can continue."

An eerie silence clouded the room as Professor Trelawney engrossed the crystal ball. Obscure images began to appear and small breaths left the witches mouth as her eyes widened at the new revelations. Out of nature, she grabbed the tea cup and hurled it towards the window, causing the window to break and send little shards of glass careering towards them. Hermione threw her arms up in front of her face and hid her head behind her legs as the small pieces of glass gently came into contact with her body. Looking through her hands, she could see that Trelawney had stood up and was now pacing back and forth in front of the window.

"P-professor? Is everything alright?" Facing the teacher, Hermione walked cautiously towards her, extending her palms to show her she wasn't armed.

Professor Trelawney's face jerked in the young witch's direction, her eyes hollow with grief. Her robes making quiet scraping noises on the floorboards as she continued pacing back and forward, muttering inaudible arguments to herself.

A creek in the floor made Hermione spin to face Draco, their faces only inches apart. It was beyond uncomfortable at their close proximity and so she made to step back before he had placed a tight grip on her elbow. Jerking slightly, she held his gaze as he looked down at her.

"Don't freak out." He cautioned, his breath lingering on her face. The smell of peppermint and musk began filling her lungs.

"It really does depend on what you're going to say to me Malfoy. Now let go of me, it's not like you saw what the crystal ball was saying."

"Actually, I did."

She was taken aback and stood there with her mouth parted as the information began to rush though her head. What had he seen that had made the Professor react so fearfully? The realisation that Ron and Harry could indeed be injured clouded her thoughts and she was forced to slump down to the ground in the most undignified way at Draco's feet.

"Malfoy, what did you see?" Blaise's voice sounded anxious as he glanced at the delicate witch that was on the ground. He placed a firm grip on Draco's shoulder and spun him around, forcing him to look him in the eyes.

"It was Potter and Weasley. As always, they've gone and got themselves into danger. Don't they ever learn? For fuck sake." Draco spat, kicking a stool nearby, sending it crashing to the opposite wall.

"I knew it." Hermione whispered under her breath, driving her hands into two tight fists until her nails dug deep into her skin. Her head hung low as her feelings were too strong to be able to look Blaise or Draco straight in the eye. Why couldn't she be with them? Her thoughts were buzzing and it was hard not to picture all the memories she had with them. A silent tear left her eye lashes and found a course down her cheeks until it dripped off the end of her chin. Pulling the sleeve of her jumper, she forced herself to stand up and wiped the remainder of her emotions off her face. Rotating in Draco's direction, her hair swaying, she grabbed the sleeve of his top hard and pulled him down to the same level as her, their faces only a few inches apart.

"Tell me where they are." Her breath stalked up his face and down his throat, sending a small shiver down his spine as he focused his eyes onto her dark coffee glare. He'd never seen her so determined before and there was a small drive that lingered at the back of his mind that liked this new Granger. But it was soon overpowered by his resentment to the witch and threw her back, stepping away from her as far as he possibly could.

"Don't you touch me, Granger. Keep your muddy hands away from me." He spat, quickly brushing his shirt with a few swift movements of his hands.

"TELL ME! THIS IS NOT A JOKE!" Her chest heaved as the resentment filled her body, her hands opening and closing at the uncooperative Slytherin.

"Malfoy-" Blaise started, only to be cut off by the Professor who was now standing still by the window, looking out onto the land.

"The forbidden forest."


End file.
